Submissions

In 2008, Minnesota had the highest youth voter turnout in the country, and
young people ages 18-29 represent 30% of the electorate in Minnesota. Hamline
students want to make sure those young voters stay involved.

Several Hamline student groups have come together to arrange a grass-roots
organized, non-partisan gubernatorial forum at Hamline University on April 15.
And, so far, they have nine candidates' confirmed attendance.

The
forum, entitled “Students Decide: What’s Your Vision for Minnesota?” will bring
student’s questions and concerns for the next Governor of Minnesota to the
forefront of the debate.

"We want to make sure that our next governor is
listening to the student voice. Students need to be a strong presence in the
gubernatorial forum to ensure that candidates are talking about our issues, such
as the rising cost of higher education, and growing the economy, so that
graduates have entry-level jobs,” said Antonia Kurtz, freshman at Hamline and
one of the lead organizers of the forum.

For the past few weeks, the
students have collected questions from drop boxes placed around campus. Their
goal was to ensure representation of a diverse range of student voices.

Students from MPIRG, Hamline Undergraduate Student Congress,
Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship, College Democrats, College Republicans, and
Women’s Resource Center have come together to organize this forum to represent a
wide range of student interests.

The forum will take place April 15th in
Kay Fredericks Ballroom, 3rd floor of the Klas Center at Hamline University,
located at 1535 Taylor Ave in Saint Paul. Doors will open at 5:30, and people
are encouraged to come early so they can vote on which questions they would like
to hear answered by the candidates. The forum will be held from 6pm-7:30pm and
is open to the public.